


New Life

by orphan_account



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword & Shield | Pokemon Sword & Shield Versions
Genre: Action/Adventure, Family Fluff, Fluff, Gen, hop admires his big brother, leon and his charmander are best friends, leon and hop have a cute brotherly relationship, leon cares about his charmander very much, more characters to come as i write
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 07:53:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21959920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Determined to become Galar’s new champion, a young Leon prepares to make the most out of his journey as a trainer. However, his plans change for the better when fate gives him a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to cross paths with his new best friend, a wild Charmander.
Kudos: 21





	New Life

**Author's Note:**

> Here’s my take on Leon’s origin, and what brought him to be how he is in the current game! I based some of this off of how Ash got his Charmander in the first season of the anime. I’m having a lot of fun making this story, so I really hope you enjoy!

“ _Baaaa_!”

A loud _bleat_ sounded as the sudden appearance of a Wooloo bursted out from the top of a grassy hill, rolling downwards and making joyous sounds, as if simulating a Pokémon’s version of laughter. Behind it came tumbling a child, the sounds of childish laughter filling the air, quite obvious to any uninvolved standby that he was enjoying time with the Wooloo, so evidentially _his_ , and gratefully not a wild Pokémon.

The child, no more than 9 years old, came to a stop on flat land and let his body spread out as he tried to control his laughter, laid on his back, staring into the sky. He took deep breaths, willing his heart to stop racing with excitement. His laughter finally came to a stop and he smiled when his small Wooloo padded up, standing over him. It leaned down to bump his head, letting out a soft sound.

“This is necessary,” the child informed his Pokémon, sitting up in the grass, clothing covered in grass stains and little strands. He brushed them off idly. “Well, maybe not the rolling part. I tripped. But if I want to be champion one day, I have to have good stamina!” 

The Wooloo bleated questioningly as the boy stood up, making a wobbly, clumsy pose. He was still slightly dizzy from his tumble. “The crowd will be screaming for me!” He grinned proudly. “They’ll call out for me, wanting to know everything! ‘Leon! Leon! How’d you become so good!’ they’d say!”

His voice raised to a higher pitch than it already was, to imitate his supposed future fans. “And I’d say...!” his speech came to a cut. “I’d say...Well, I haven’t thought it out that far yet.” Smiling goofily, Leon sat back down beside his Wooloo. “But I still probably have several years to come before I’m champion. I’ll get there, one day!”

The Wooloo didn’t say anything further, seeming to enjoy basking in the warm sun of their small neighborhood. It didn’t matter much, considering Leon couldn’t actually understand his Pokémon, but he still considered it fun to pretend like he was getting a conversation out of it. He was sure everyone did this.

“Leon!” a sudden voice called, snapping him from his thoughts as he turned to see his mom at his front door, waving to him while holding a small infant. “Time for dinner! Won’t you and Wooloo come inside?”

Leon was quick to get on his feet, racing to his home with the Wooloo rolling beside him. As soon as he entered the house, he attempted to run to the dinner table but was immediately stopped by his mother, who had put the little infant down.

“Not so fast, mister. You’re dirty!” His mother began to brush off grass that had found their way on his clothing and hair. “I swear, ever since you got that Wooloo, you’ve been into nothing but trouble.”

“Mum!” Leon frowned, albeit playfully, trying to squirm away from his mother’s grasps. It proved to be useless whenever his mom grabbed his cheek, lovingly pinching it lightly. “You know I don’t want my little Lee to get hurt!” She laughed, releasing him.

Leon only smiled at her and ran with a giggle, taking a seat at the dinner table. The Wooloo rolled beside him, pushing a food bowl in the process.

“I’ll be fine, Mum,” Leon smiled, legs kicking underneath the table as he watched his mother prepare two plates of curry. Before she set dinner down, she went to pick up the little baby boy, setting him in a high chair right beside Leon. “Besides, I’m going to join the Gym Challenge soon, as soon as I turn 10!”

“Yeah?” His mother smiled at him, listening to her oldest child ramble with all loving intent. She set the food down for both of them, prepared the Wooloo’s food, and then made baby food. The infant babbled and slapped his hands on the table, blowing raspberries with his tongue.

“Yeah? Really? What do you have to say about that, Hop?” The mother lovingly talked to her youngest son, smiling at the baby as he continued to make incoherent sounds, smiling. “Are you going to be champion too, like your big brother?”

“Once I become champion,” Leon began again, his mouth stuffed full with food as he scarfed it down. “Maybe I’ll face Hop when he gets my age, and he’ll get to be champion, too! Besides, I’ll probably be very old by then. Maybe I’ll want to retire.”

“You’ll only be nineteen when Hop is ten,” his mother laughed, amused by Leon’s childish logic. “If that’s old to you, then I don’t want to even hear what you have to say about me.”

“Don’t worry, Mum,” Leon smiled, leaving his seat and walking over to give her a kiss on the cheek once he finished his plate. “You’ll never be old.”

As Leon washed his dishes, his mother fed Hop, listening to the baby make bubbly, happy sounds in response to his mother imitating the sounds of a train as the spoon entered his mouth.

“I’m gonna go to my room, ‘kay Mum?” Leon asked once he had finished cleaning, slinging his hands around to rid it of the water instead of using paper towels.

“Of course, hun,” his mother hummed, eyes locked on Hop as he ate, opening his mouth wide and happily babbling as soon as the food entered his mouth. “Oh, let Wooloo stay down here, won’t you? I think it’s taken a liking to Hop—they’re starting to become best friends.”

“Okay!” was all Leon responded with as he walked over to his eating Pokémon, kneeling over to pat it on its soft head before he left to go to his room.

Today was exhausting—he had spent all day from morning to afternoon training. Right now to him, going to sleep early sounded nice. While he laid in bed, waiting for sleep to overtake him, he thought about his future.

He wanted to be champion. No doubt, he _would_ be champion. He was doing this partially for himself, but also...now that Hop was in the picture, he just wanted his baby brother to be proud of him. For Hop to have someone to look up to.

His mother was already proud, but now he wanted a little brother to see him as a _hero_. Leon never really had anyone to look up to—if he wasn’t so dedicated, maybe it would have shattered his dreams in a different universe. This was why he wanted things to be different for his brother’s life. He wanted Hop to find happiness and content in him. Thinking about his love for his family, Leon began to drift off on his bed and soon afterwards, sleep overtook him as he laid there, comfortably, dreaming of his future.

Hours into the night, a loud cry made its way through Leon’s ears as the young boy shot up in alarm, awakened by the sound. He didn’t know what it was at first until it sounded again, echoing through the night. It sounded like a Pokémon, but he couldn’t tell which one. In a hurry, the boy put his shoes on and set to leave, as quietly as he could as to not disturb his family.

Upon leaving the house, he discovered it was raining, or rather, pouring quite heavily. A weighted _pitter patter_ sounded outside as the water droplets fell continuously. Putting on the hood of his light blue jacket that sat on top of his snapback, Leon hurried off in the rain, off in the direction of the noise.

“I think I heard it from the Slumbering Weald,” he spoke aloud to himself, voice lightly quivering with both anxiety, anticipation, and chills. He’d never been there before, and in fact, he’d always been warned away from it. He’d never actually seen _anybody_ go in there. Were there dangerous Pokémon in there?

Leon gulped. Forget the dangerous Pokémon—in there, there was a Pokémon _in danger_! Putting his anxieties behind, he trudged forward, hopping the fence and making his way into the woods.

Fog surrounded him the deeper he got in, making it harder to see anything. “Hello?” Leon called out. “Is anyone here?” 

Silence greeted him, not even a cry. Before Leon could say anything more, a dark figure zoomed past him with a _swoosh_ , like it was cutting the air with a sword. The boy yelped with surprise and tumbled backwards, landing on his backside. He could see a dark figure in the distance of the fog, fairly tall and standing on four legs. A Pokémon! Is this what was crying out?

As quick as it appeared, it fled as soon as he heard another cry—the same cry he’d been hearing since he woke up, but it wasn’t coming from the large creature that had been in front of him. With a gasp, Leon was quick to get on his feet, following the source, wanting to be away from the mysterious Pokémon and wherever it went. It had stared at him menacingly, unmoving. He didn’t know where it disappeared to now, but if it had attacked him... Without his Wooloo, who was safely sleeping at home, he’d be a goner!

Another cry, but this time it was becoming more clear. It was the sound of a Pokémon he didn’t recognize. It sounded weak, hurt, and afraid. Leon was thinking by impulse, and he wanted to help it, but he wasn’t exactly sure what he was going to do when he found it. Was it a big Pokémon? Small? Would it attack him? He didn’t have any Pokéballs, nor did he have a way to defend himself.

“I’m coming! I’ll help you, I promise,” Leon tried as he called out, wanting to at least alert the Pokémon of his approaching presence. Another cry, as if the creature was responding to him. “Don’t worry, I’ll find you. Just hold tight, okay? I’ll get you out of here.”

Leon spotted a small flame off in the distance, struggling to stay lit underneath the heavy rainfall. Oh, had there been a small fire? Perhaps it was the works of a fire Pokémon, trying to make its presence known and get help. The boy calmly approached the flame, more clearly being able to see that it was lit underneath a bush, and seeing a large eye staring at him from underneath. “Are you in here?” Leon spoke gently, his voice quivering slightly from the cold. “D-Don’t be frightened, I won’t hurt you.”

Leon gently pulled the bush aside, revealing a small, bright orange Pokémon with a weakly lit flame at the tip of its long tail. It was covered in wounds, and looked close to fainting.

“Hey...I’ve never seen a Pokémon like you before,” Leon stared at the lizard-like creature. He reached out a hand. “What are you?”

The Pokémon in response didn’t make a sound, only tensed and curled up more tightly, one eye poking out and staring at him. It shuddered violently. Leon quickly withdrew his hand. “Don’t worry! I won’t hurt you, I promise. I want to help you.” 

“ _Rrrr_ ,” was the only sound the creature made. It seemed to slacken as a little bit of tension was released. 

“That flame on your tail...It’s very small. You seem very weak,” Leon was worried. Did the flame have anything to do with the creature’s health? He had to get it to a Pokémon center, and fast. “Let me help you. Please?”

The orange Pokémon seemed vaguely untrusting of the boy but nevertheless allowed Leon to gently pick it up. Leon sat down in the wet grass and took off his hoodie, wrapping the wet, cold Pokémon in it and keeping it lifted where its tail was. “T-There!” Leon smiled happily, trying not to show his evident chills. “Now m-maybe your flame w-will grow! I’ll g-get you all healed u-up, o-okay?”

Leon stood up, cradling the small Pokémon in his arms. It’s eyes were closing, but Leon could not tell whether it was because it was sleeping, or it was beginning to pass out. “D-Don’t faint, please...” he whispered, his fears becoming stronger. _I don’t know if you’ll wake back up._ “Just hold ou-out for a little bit longer.”

Now came the hard part. Leon wasn’t exactly sure how to get out of here—he had always been very poor with directions. What if he ran into that large Pokémon again? Leon pushed back his anxieties and continued forward. Even if he got lost, he’d have to find his way out eventually.

By the time he found his way out, the sun was beginning to rise. Leon was tired, hungry, cold, and wet, but he forced himself to continue on, leaving his hometown into the next town, Wedgehurst. He wasted no time in getting to the Pokémon Center.

“I’d like to buy one Pokéball, please,” Leon stated as he approached the shop’s counter. A single one was handed over and he payed the right price. Kneeling down on one knee, he gently laid the orange Pokémon down, observing it. It was sleeping.

“Okay, buddy, you’ll be safe with me now. I have to do this so I can get you healed,” Leon spoke softly, as if it could hear him. “I hope you don’t mind.” He touched the Pokéball to the creature and it retracted into it, twitching three times until it stilled with a soft, finalized click. Leon let out a small sigh of relief, picking up the ball and taking it over to the Nurse.

“Can you heal my Pokémon for me?” he asked, worry evident in his eyes. 

“Of course, dear,” the Nurse took the ball and quickly got to work. A question bit at her mind and she couldn’t help but ask it. “I hope you don’t mind me asking, but this is the first time I’ve seen a kid as young as you out here at this time. You’re soaking wet. Did something happen?”

“The Pokémon...it isn’t mine. I found it in the Slumbering Weald. It was really hurt, and if I hadn’t of found it in time, I think it might of...” He didn’t want to finish that sentence. The possibility hurt him. “That was at midnight, and well, heh—I got lost, I guess.”

The Nurse smiled at him genuinely. “How sweet of you. It’s not just nobody’s Pokémon, it’s _yours_ now. I imagine it will be very grateful. Did you name it?”

“I guess I didn’t really expect to keep it...” Leon admitted. “I don’t know what I’d name it. It has a small flame on its tail, maybe that could help me come up with an idea?”

Something caught the Nurse’s attention. “A small flame?” She wasted no time in turning her attention away to the screen in front of her, which showed all of the Pokémon’s data. “Ah, that’s unusual...”

“What?”

“Somehow you’ve managed to get ahold of a Pokémon that’s, well, not apart of the Galar region.”

Leon’s face was blank and his mind felt empty, trying to process this information. “What?” he repeated, lost. 

“This is a Charmander. You’ve heard of those, haven’t you?” Leon shook his head in response. “Well, they originate from Kanto, and only Kanto. If they’re in another region, they were imported. That is not the case with Galar. No Charmanders were to be imported here...either a trainer left him here, or he fell out of the vehicle on a trip to a different region.”

Leon’s eyes lit up with wonder. He didn’t know very much about the other regions, only very little information. “So you mean I’m the only one with this Pokémon in the entirety of Galar?”

“Yes, unless another trainer happens to have one.” The Nurse unattached the Pokéball from its healing station, handing it over to Leon. “Your Charmander is all healed up! Get home and get some rest, won’t you? It seems like you’ve had a long night.”

Leon smiled at her. “I will! Thank you so much!” The young boy waved at her as he left the Center, making the journey back home. He stared down at his Pokémon, where his new friend was likely getting the sleep it deserved, not aware of his new life. “I’m glad to have you, Charmander,” Leon smiled at the ball. “Just wait. Me and you will be champions of Galar one day!”

Leon snuck inside his house, not wanting to disturb his mother or baby brother as they slept, unaware of the adventure that he had just had. He quietly crept into his room, undressing from his wet clothes. He used a towel to dry off before he put on some dry night clothes. “Tomorrow will be another adventure, Charmander,” Leon spoke softly as he got into bed, placing the Pokéball on his bedside table. He stared at it as sleep began to overtake him, yawning. “I really hope you like me...” And with that, he was passed out asleep.


End file.
